The Slade Stroll is a gentle circular amble around the lanes and footpaths from Corntown, through the Slade Estate, under the Slade viaduct, past the old Cornwood Railway Station and back through Corntown. During the period of Covid restrictions it was one of our favourite local walks. Including cache searches, the walk should take no more than a couple of hours. Take care on the roads - although generally quiet, they are narrow in places. We advise you park by the Church in Cornwood and wander down to Corntown. The Slade Stroll doesn't lend itself well to a Cache and Dash series, as farm vehicles do come and go quite often using the gateways and the roads are popular with horse riders. See Waypoints for parking.
A few of the caches have room for swag and travelbugs. Where space allows we have placed a few little "prizes" around the Stroll for anyone on the first day to claim. One prize per finder though please. Feel free to claim FTF honours on the first day.
This is an impressive spot, right under the huge viaduct structure. What you can see today are the upright sections (piers) of the original viaduct, mostly covered in ivy. Don't worry - the cache isn't in that! We are not THAT mean!
The 101-foot high viaduct with stone piers was one of a series of viaducts of similar design built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) for the South Devon Railway linking Exeter and Plymouth, which was completed in 1849. Although inexpensive to build, the timber viaducts had a short lifespan, and needed to be replaced by stone or brick structures. This one was replaced in 1893. Nowadays the trains travel alongside on the replacement viaduct. Don't forget to wave to any passing trains!
Cache #5 is a camo-ed container with room for swag and travelbugs. Probably somewhere between "small" and "regular" in size. Tweezers would be useful. Please don't damage the wall.
After logging your find carry on along the path, where you may catch sight of deer in the wooded area above if you are lucky. Please keep dogs on leads through the Estate, as sheep are usually in the fields. When you reach the road, turn left.
Please replace all the caches carefully where you found them. Do not leave food in the caches as swag and avoid spoilers in your log. Thanks for your understanding.
Caches placed with grateful permission of the Slade Estate.